Good morning, D.C. In today’s newsletter: Advisory neighborhood commissioners, Montgomery County schools and a NYC-DC crossover.
THE LATEST
No one is on the ballot for a good chunk of the District’s advisory neighborhood commissioner positions ahead of tomorrow’s nomination deadline.
Of 345 ANC positions, 58 had no listed candidates as of Saturday. Though the unpaid position isn’t the flashiest in D.C. politics, ANC commissioners are vital neighborhood voices, advising the government on community issues like local zoning decisions. Some, including Mayor Muriel Bowser, go on to higher office.
Trending
“I’m not concerned about the vacancies that are on the nominating list, and I probably wouldn’t be concerned until after the deadline,” Kent Boese, head of D.C.’s ANC office, told NOTUS. There are fewer vacancies this cycle than there were two years ago, Boese said, and many candidates file right before the deadline or launch write-in campaigns closer to November.
The vacancies are an opportunity for advocacy groups like the Washington Area Bicyclist Association. The nonpartisan nonprofit circulated an email this week urging members in empty districts to apply.
“We do want to encourage the District to create safe transportation infrastructure, including bike lanes, bus priority projects, and working with the ANCs is a great way to do it,” Seth Grimes, an organizer with WABA, told NOTUS. “Many times vacancies are hard to fill. There are no candidates, and so we thought, well, why not use our database and reach out to people?”
WABA has filled nine vacant ANC spots with its members since March 2025, Grimes said.
FROM THE DISTRICT
President Donald Trump is considering removing U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro from her post, CNN reports. Pirro, a longtime Trump ally, recently angered the president when her office dismissed all charges against David Hearn, the Olympic canoeist who was arrested on suspicion of vandalizing the Reflecting Pool. Pirro’s office said the damage was more likely due to a botched job by the contractor, not widespread vandalism as Trump has repeatedly claimed. On Monday, Trump said Pirro “folded like an umbrella.”
FROM VIRGINIA
Amazon wants to build four data centers on George Washington University’s Ashburn campus, which the company bought this year for $427 million, the Loudoun Times-Mirror reports. Amazon got its application in ahead of a fall meeting in which Loudoun County officials will weigh a data center moratorium as they consider how to regulate the industry.
FROM MARYLAND
Montgomery County redrew its public school boundaries this spring, but the debate didn’t end there. Some parents are suing, saying the plan illegally closes one of the county’s most prestigious high schools, Jeff Barker writes for NOTUS.
FROM YOUR FEED
A New Yorker's guide to DC. (Springfield, VA is Staten Island) pic.twitter.com/bes9FcRTKS
— Timothy B. Lee (@binarybits) August 2, 2026
A tweet attempting to map New York City boroughs onto the DMV made the rounds over the weekend. Our team has some thoughts:
- “It is genuinely hard to think of a single thing College Park, Maryland, has in common with the Upper West Side. And I say that as a proud Maryland alum.” — Michael Errigo, deputy editor
- “Comparing Capitol Hill to New Jersey is a choice.” — Shamira Muhammad, D.C. reporter
- “This is pretty perfect social media content: It plays on D.C.'s occasional insecurities of not being NYC, it makes sweeping generalizations about D.C.'s neighborhoods that miss loads of local nuance, and, despite my best efforts not to, I end up arguing with people about it.” — Martin Austermuhle, D.C. reporter
WHAT YOU GET FOR $800,000
Listed for $799,900, this two-bedroom, two-bathroom home features solid oak hardwood floors, modern finishes and an open-concept living space.
Guess where this listing is sold:
We’ll let you know tomorrow how many of you got it right.
SPORTS
The MLB trade deadline has officially passed, and the Nats turned out to be both buyers and sellers.
After adding an arm last week, Washington made three trades in the 24 hours before Monday’s 6 p.m. deadline. They sent out infielder Luis García Jr., pitcher Foster Griffin and outfielder Christian Franklin. In return they got back eight more pitchers, some of whom are expected to contribute right away.NOTUS’ Jesse Dougherty broke down the Garcia deal, calling it both strategically sound and emotionally fraught for fans.
Training camp update: NOTUS’ Martenzie Johnson reports that the Commanders’ offensive struggles may have been greatly exaggerated. On Monday in Ashburn, Jayden Daniels got the unit rolling. He completed multiple impressive touchdown passes, and the offensive line held up much better than it did last week.
What to Watch Today
MLB: Nationals at Phillies, 6:40 p.m. (MLB.TV)
Thank you for reading! If you liked this newsletter, please forward it to a friend. If someone shared it with you, please sign up — it’s free! Got a tip or comments to share? Email us at metro@notus.com.
The newsletter was produced by Jaden Amos, Michael Errigo and Nikie Johnson. Real estate photo by Derek & Vee. Finally, yesterday’s trivia answer was A) D.C. A special shout-out to Carolynn Race, who answered first.
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